More to New Orleans than beads, Bourbon

FILE - In this Aug, 31, 2005 file photo, a man pushes his bicycle through flood waters near the Superdome in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina left much of the city under water. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
— AP

FILE - In this Aug, 31, 2005 file photo, a man pushes his bicycle through flood waters near the Superdome in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina left much of the city under water. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
/ AP

“We do have a high murder rate,” said James Carville, co-chairperson of the New Orleans Super Bowl Committee.

A police officer who works in New Orleans’ Seventh District, the headquarters of which are located on the east side just a few blocks from the hospital’s construction, agreed to speak Saturday under the condition of anonymity, citing department policy against speaking to reporters.

The officer and a colleague both said they agree with a local perception that younger offenders are committing more serious crimes since Katrina.

Some residents tie the perceived phenomena to the recreation centers that were destroyed and never rebuilt, eliminating outlets for youth activity.

The officer believes that explanation is too simple, saying enough resources are there for those who choose to use them.

Instead, the officer says that, like the empty east-side buildings, many of the city’s people problems stem from abandonment. Many of these offenders are literally people who, when the storm hit, were left to fend for themselves.

“You leave a 17-, 18-year-old who doesn’t work, has no resources coming in monetary-wise,” the officer said. “What do you think he’s going to do? He has to eat. He has to pay lights. How do you think he’s going to get it? …

“Mom is thinking he’s grown now. He’s 18. But think about it. At 18, you’re really not grown. You’re an adult in the eyes of the law, but you’re really not grown.”

That generation has come of age away from downtown, getting by any way it can. Having a football game here — even the biggest game on the planet — is not likely to solve those people’s problems, not even a little bit.

In New Orleans, this is a time of celebration. Mardi Gras parades have begun. Music is playing. Beads are flying.

Among them, a streetcar line on Loyola Avenue extends all the way to the Superdome, where more than 20,000 hotel rooms are within walking distance. Of residents polled, the vast majority said they welcome the game being here, believing it is a positive for the city.

“My description of the city is that 40 percent is actually better than it was before the storm, and 40 percent is getting better,” Carville said.

“And 20 percent is struggling.”

And that’s the real New Orleans. For all the joy, for all the reasons for excitement, for all the reminders of how far most of this city has come, there are many other reminders of how much work remains.

There are still strings of empty homes.

There is still an abandoned Six Flags amusement park.

On Read Boulevard, within sight of the hospital construction, there is still an empty movie theater.

The Grand 12 Theatre, it was called, opened less than three years before Hurricane Katrina arrived. It’s been reduced to a graffiti artist’s playground.

A chain-linked rent-a-fence is kicked in, offering easy access to the parking lot. Its white direction arrows and blue handicap spaces are faded.